Speed DatingFairy Tail Style
by kat5552
Summary: Discontinued. Mirajane is tired of all of her friends being single. So, she takes it upon herself to set up a speed dating event... After all...what other event would bring all of her ideal couples together in one place?
1. Chapter 1

Speed Dating…Fairy Tail Style

"But Mira!" Lucy whined into her cell phone as she opened the door to her apartment, immediately kicking her shoes off and hanging up her keys on the rack by the door, "I don't _want_ to attend a speed dating event! Seriously…I _like_ being single!"

Lucy cringed internally as she lied that she enjoyed being single, and she heard utter silence on the other end of the phone that made her grow very concerned for her slightly older, white-haired friend.

"Mira?" Lucy asked cautiously when after a few moments Mira still had not responded.

"YOU C-C-C-CAN'T LIKE BEING S-S-S-S-SINGLE!" she moved the phone a good foot away from her ear as Mira's sobbing voice came booming through the phone. Feeling utterly bewildered at Mira's overreaction, Lucy tried to calm her down after moving the phone back to her ear.

"No, really, Mira," she insisted as Mira blubbered on and on about her friend never getting married and not having beautiful brown eyed babies and taking Lamaze classes with her, "I'm fine with being single right now. I'm at a really critical part of my career and I need to just focus on that…" Lucy felt her blood chill as yet another silence came over the phone, although she knew it wasn't the same kind of silence as the last one. Worriedly, she wound a lock of her long blonde hair around her finger.

"You will come to this event, Lucy Heartfilia," Mira told her quite ominously, "I am the coordinator for this event and I will _personally_ drag you here tomorrow night if I have to. Saying you have to focus on your career instead of love…honestly…"

* * *

"So that's how I have wound up getting ready for a speed dating event I don't actually want to attend," Lucy said as she looked over at her good friend, Erza, sitting on her bed.

"Mirajane is a force of nature, Lucy. You shouldn't be so surprised she is having you do this," the beautiful redhead said quite seriously, critically eyeing the dress Lucy was holding up. It was a deep maroon color, full-length, low-cut, and had thin straps and a ridiculously high slit; when on the busty blonde, the slit went practically up to her hip on the right side.

"Well that's what I'm getting ready for, anyway," Lucy repeated with a shrug then gestured towards the dress, "So do you think this would work?"

"I think it's a bit fancier than the event itself, Lu," Lucy and Erza's friend, Levy, responded as she walked into the room. The petite blue-haired girl had a plate of nachos in her hand and Lucy and Erza both gratefully took one when Levy offered them.

"I've never been to a speed dating event!" Lucy wailed as she threw her dress onto the pile of already discarded outfits on her bed. The pile was growing quite quickly and was in danger of being taller than the redhead seated beside it. "What do you even _do_ at a speed dating event?"

"I believe you go on dates," Levy murmured sarcastically under her breath, causing Erza to smile gently when she overheard.

"But…but…" Lucy spluttered, having also heard Levy's comment, "But what do you wear?! You're expected to go on several dates at once, right? So what do you _wear_!"

"This is what I'm wearing," Erza said, gesturing towards the dark wash skinny jeans, knee high black boots, and long sleeved white sweater she was wearing. Before Lucy could do anything more than open her mouth disbelievingly, Levy spoke up as well.

"And I'm wearing this!" Levy said brightly, gesturing towards her khaki pants and vividly orange sweater. Lucy gaped at her two friends disbelievingly for a moment before she was actually capable of forming words and letting them out of her mouth.

"You…you…" Lucy started, swallowing hard to try and center herself, "You're both going to this stupid event! Why didn't you tell me before _right now_!" Erza raised an eyebrow at Lucy's outburst while Levy just chuckled uncomfortably.

"Um…well…" Levy began, reaching up to readjust the orange headband in her hair, before Erza interrupted her.

"Mira called in a favor," Erza said imperiously, standing up and disregarding Lucy's indignation as she began to comb through the clothes left in the blonde's closet, "We were…coerced into attending the event and then when she got confirmation you would attend, as well, we were called in to make sure you went through with it."

"I can't believe you two!" Lucy yelled in outrage, pacing her room as she threw her hands up in the air and started gesturing wildly at her two best friends. "So how did Mira get you to agree to go to a speed dating event? Was it bribery? Blackmail? Extortion!"

Feeling concerned for her blonde friend, Levy turned to Erza, who's mouth was set in a grim line as they both listened to her rant. A silent communication occurred between the two women as they watched Lucy; they decided to just let her vent while they found her the perfect outfit for the event. Lord knew Mira would murder them all in their sleep, or worse, set them up on blind dates with _really_ disgusting men just to get back at them, if they didn't show up to the first speed dating event she was the coordinator of.

When Lucy had finally run out of adjectives to call Erza and Levy and was breathing heavily, the blue and red-haired women looked at their friend before holding up the outfit they had chosen. It was a fairly simple outfit; tight black jeans, a bright pink, off the shoulder top that also had a silver "necklace" of sorts attached that, once on, would wrap around Lucy's neck like a halter top, and a pair of ridiculously fun and sexy strappy silver heels. As they held up the outfit like a peace offering to their infuriated friend, they watched her face lose all traces of anger and the flush leave her cheeks. With triumphant grins, they watched as Lucy took the outfit in awe.

"I didn't even remember I had that…" the busty blonde whispered as she took the outfit from their hands and slowly walked to the bathroom to put it on. As Lucy pulled on the outfit and looked herself over in the full-length mirror, she couldn't believe what amazing friends she had. Yeah she had been initially pissed Mira had essentially threatened her into going to this event and that Levy and Erza were both in on it, she couldn't help but admit that being single sucked, especially when she was trying to write a best-selling romance novel. Kinda put a damper on the whole creative process when she didn't have any experience to actually draw from…

"Oh Lu!" Levy gushed as soon as Lucy had exited the bathroom, "You look great! Those guys aren't going to know what hit them!" Erza nodded in agreement as she took in the blonde's style change. Her hair was no longer flowing freely down her back; instead, it was up in a somewhat messy bun with a few tendrils falling out. In a word, Lucy looked perfect.

"Shall we head out now?" Erza asked once they were all done checking (and re-checking…) one another for any imperfections in their outfits or food left in their teeth.

"Ah I don't think I can do this!" Levy whimpered as both Lucy and Erza moved to the door of the blonde's apartment. Both of them looked back at Levy incredulously as she faltered in the middle of Lucy's living room.

"Oh no," Lucy said viciously as she grabbed hold of one of Levy's arms while Erza grabbed the other, "You two came here to make sure I went to this damn event, so now I'm going to return the favor! Suck it up and let's go!" Despite her words to Levy, Lucy felt her heart hammering in her chest and wondered what the stoic Erza was feeling and glanced at her out of the corner of her eye and felt her nerves amp up as she took in the redhead's tense, pale face. Did _any_ of them actually want to be doing this?

"Lucy! Erza! Levy!" they heard Mira call out to them as they neared the restaurant she managed. They had walked in utter silence, each seeming to support the others more as they neared their destination, as they dreaded the event they were about to go to. They had no idea what to expect and were fairly disconcerted _Mira_ was the one running the event. The ridiculously gorgeous, white-haired woman wasn't exactly known for her restraint…

"I'm so glad you guys could make it!" she said with a maniacal glint to her eye when the three had reached her, "All of the other participants are here already, but you won't get to see any of the men yet!" Mira informed them with a giggle.

"So…" Erza said somewhat croakily before clearing her throat, "What is our expectation for the evening?" Levy and Lucy both looked at her in bewildered awe; Erza made it sound like this was some sort of mission they were going on.

"You'll fill out these forms and then go have a seat at one of the tables after writing your name on one of these name tags!" Mira said, clapping her hands to one of her waitresses, who quickly scampered over and shoved some paperwork and pens into the women's hands before moving away like they had the plague. Huh…maybe they did since they'd been forced into this event against their wills.

Feeling a bit jittery, the three women went further into the restaurant, finding ten tables set up in a horseshoe pattern around the back room and women already seated at six of them. With a gasp, Lucy recognized several of her friends, including Mira's sister, Lisanna, her good friend from high school, Aries, the resident "drunk" of her group of girl friends, Cana, her youngest friend (only twenty compared to her twenty-five) Mavis, her good friend from her college years, Juvia, and finally Evergreen, who she knew through Lisanna and Mira.

With friendly, and commiserating, smiles, Lucy, Erza, and Levy joined the group of women. Lisanna immediately said hello to the three, followed by the other women. As they all finished filling out their paperwork, they laughed and talked about how Mira had gotten them all together for this ridiculous event. Most of them had been coerced, blackmailed, or otherwise strong-armed into coming. When most of them had finished with the paperwork, Mira came into the room, beaming.

"Yay now we're all here!" she said joyfully clapping her hands together. All of the women looked around her, trying to see who the tenth female participant was going to be, before Mira announced that she herself would be taking the final spot, since their other friend, Kinana, had already hooked up with someone. Almost simultaneously, the other nine women in the room's jaws dropped; how could Mira coordinate the event if she was _also a participant_!

"Mirajane," Erza began seriously, but Mira cut her off.

"This will be so much fun! I've put two of my very best staff on as the 'coordinators' so I could participate tonight! Wendy, Romeo, come on in!" she hollered over her shoulder as she took a seat at the one empty table. As one, the ten women watched two teenagers, barely sixteen, walk into the room, looking incredibly awkward and uncomfortable. The girl, Wendy, had long blue hair and was ridiculously adorable while the boy, Romeo, had dark hair and a blush that seemed to be permanent on his cheeks as he looked at the women and then quickly looked away again.

"H-hi there!" Wendy spoke up shakily, waving at the ladies gathered, "I'm Wendy and I'll be co-coordinating this event with Romeo for Ms. Mirajane. We hope you all have a wonderful time!" Unable to help themselves any longer, several of the girls let out "Aw!"-s at Wendy's cuteness.

"S-so this is how the speed dating event will go," Romeo said, stepping in for Wendy when her cheeks flushed a brilliant red, "There are ten other, male participants. They will be entering the room shortly and will sit down at a table of their choosing. You will have five minutes for each 'date' before Wendy or I hit the bell, signaling the date has come to an end and the man needs to move on to the next table. You each have been given paperwork to complete as well as a folder. The paperwork will be given to us and you will keep the folder. In the folder is a two-column table. In the first column, you will write the name of the man you are on the date with and then in the second column you will write a simple 'Yes', 'No', or 'Maybe'."

"Why maybe?" Evergreen asked, flipping her long light brown hair over her shoulder impatiently, "I am pretty certain I will know for sure if I want to date a guy or not after five minutes." Lucy couldn't refrain from rolling her eyes at Evergreen's rather imperious attitude. She knew the slightly older woman was very opinionated, but that was a bit unnecessary in her opinion.

"Oh give it up, Evergreen," Cana said with a slur, probably from the amount of alcohol she had consumed prior to coming to the restaurant, "We all know you and Mira's little brother have a thing for one another and you _still_ haven't owned up to it." As the women around the room let out a collective chuckle, Evergreen's face turned bright red and she spluttered about how she absolutely _did not_ have a thing for Mira's little brother.

"A-anyway," Wendy said, clearing her throat as Romeo looked at the women, utterly flabbergasted with their behavior, "You can write maybe if you think you might like the person enough to have another date with them. At the end of the event, we will provide you with the contact information to the ones you wrote 'Yes' next to and give you the opportunity to decide whether or not you would want the 'Maybe'-s contact information."

"Will the men know if we said yes or no, before we call them up that is?" Erza suddenly spoke up. All of the women looked at her, stunned at the question but agreeing it was a good one.

"Yes," the petite woman named Mavis said, running a hand through her long, golden hair, "I don't want to hurt any of the men's feelings, but I also don't want my contact information going to someone I don't want it going to."

"Contact information will only be given out to those men who agreed with your 'Yes'," Romeo stated reassuringly, "And to the men you said 'Maybe' to if you so choose."

"That's a relief," Lucy said under her breath. She didn't think any of the guys Mira would have allowed into this event would be creepers, but one can never really know, so it was great to know she wouldn't have to worry about somebody potentially stalking her.

"Are there any more questions?" Wendy asked sweetly as she looked the women over. When no one answered with an affirmative, Wendy smiled and continued, "So once the men are in here and seated, you will have five minutes to talk with them about whatever topics you choose. I do suggest keeping the topics…appropriate," Wendy blushed here when Cana whistled and catcalled before continuing on, "And if you at any time feel uncomfortable, you can raise your hand and Romeo or I will come to your aid."

"As most of you have probably already noticed, each of your tables have numbers on them," Romeo said, taking over the speech for a moment, "Once your 'dates' are over, the men will rotate in a counterclockwise manner around the tables moving in numerical order. So, if you are at table 3, after your date the man will move on to table 4 and the man from table 2 will join you at your table."

"Any other questions?" Wendy asked as she nervously pulled at the collar of her button up shirt. Mira beamed at her when no one asked anything else, "W-well let's go ahead and get started then! Romeo, please go get the gentlemen from the other room for their dates."

With a grin and a wave at all of the ladies assembled, Romeo turned and took off towards another part of the restaurant, leaving the room in utter silence.

 _W-well…here goes nothing!_ Lucy thought to herself as she heard footsteps heading back towards them. A sense of excited trepidation washed over her as her heart raced as she looked down at the single candle and rose on the table in front of her. She listened closely as she heard the chair across from her being pulled out and she hesitantly rose her gaze to meet the man's across from her…

* * *

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE:** So…instead of writing _Evading Destiny_ 's next chapter, like I should have, I came up with this lol. I'm thinking I'll continue it, probably with at least another ten chapters to encompass each date and then maybe one more after the final date to kind of wrap it up. I would love to hear any thoughts people have on it though! For instance, if you are interested in me continuing this, would you want Lucy's perspective of the dates only, or would you want all of the girls' perspectives on their dates?


	2. Chapter 2

Date # 1

 _Table 1: Mira_

Mira giggled as her little brother, Elfman, sat down across from her. With a blissful sigh, she gazed at all of the couples around them getting to know one another before she turned back to him with a smile.

"Hi Elfman," she said, her sweet smile still upon her face.

"Big Sis!" he cried, his voice loud despite the close quarters, "This event you have put on is MAN!"

Mira giggled as she looked over and noticed Evergreen staring at their table and her right eye twitching as she glared at Elfman. Mira was so excited to see _that_ date happen…maybe these two fools would finally admit something for each other.

"Thank you, Elfman," Mira said as she turned her gaze away from Evergreen, who blushed a brilliant red at being caught staring before turning her gaze determinedly back to her own date.

"It is kind of _unmanly_ , though, that I'll be going on a date with both of my sisters…" Elfman mumbled, looking down at the table while Mira giggled again.

"Think of it as extra bonding time between siblings," she said with a smile as Elfman looked back up. A large grin split his face as he cried, "Bonding with your sisters is MANLY!" Mira giggled again as she noticed Evergreen looking back over at their table with a rather murderous look on her face. Oh this whole event was going to be a _blast_!

With another blissful sigh, Mira settled back in her chair to enjoy the last few minutes of her "bonding time" with her little brother, listening to him as he talked enthusiastically about his new job at the veterinary clinic and taking in the sight of all of her friends on their "dates". If _this_ didn't get her favorite couples to finally hook up, she wasn't going to know what to do with herself.

* * *

 _Table 2: Cana_

Cana was looking down at the table when someone bumped into it. Startled, she looked up only to see a very muscular man in dark, baggy pants and a skintight long sleeved blue shirt. Blearily she looked at the nametag he wore after she registered that he did, in fact, have small triangle tattoos under his eyes.

"Bacchus?" she questioned as the man staggered to his feet and then slumped into the chair across from her.

"Yo," he said with a grin, "So where's the booze?"

"There's booze?!" Cana asked in delight, looking around him, like he would magically produce a bottle from somewhere behind him, or maybe from somewhere in that shirt since she _definitely_ wouldn't mind seeing him without it.

"Holy shit where!" Bacchus asked, looking around Cana and trying to find it, even as he discreetly ogled her ample bust in her low-cut shirt.

"I don't see any," Cana said, suddenly melancholy as she realized neither of them had any alcohol, and he wasn't about to be taking his shirt off any time soon.

"Seriously?" Bacchus said, his eyes widening humorously, "What the hell kind of date doesn't have booze?"

"Right!" Cana stated, slapping her hand down on their table as she leaned forward to talk to him, not so subtly making her cleavage pop as her chest threatened to spill out of her top, "So what's your favorite type? Brandy, tequila, vodka?"

Bacchus grinned widely at Cana as she started talking about her favorite kind of booze, and the fact she seemed like she didn't care she was _this_ close to exposing herself. This chick was going to be _fun_.

"Hey…so when we get out of here," Bacchus interrupted Cana as she was on a long rant about how this brewery had kicked her out when she drank their owner's entire supply of fifteen year old scotch, "Want to go get a drink?"

"Oh hell yes," Cana said with a smirk, "I know this great bar a few blocks from here…bet I could drink you under the table, lightweight."

With a feral grin, Bacchus said, "You're on," right as Romeo rang the bell to end the round. With a smile, Cana scrawled down Bacchus's name in her folder, then a large 'Yes' right next to it as she watched him walk to the next table.

* * *

 _Table 3: Mavis_

Mavis was really, really, _really_ excited about this whole speed-dating thing. When Mira had called her up and offered her a table, she had definitely jumped at the chance. She might be only twenty, but her mind was far older than most of her friends and honestly most of them looked up to her for advice. When she wasn't being mischievous that is.

"Mavis?" a voice asked in surprise as Mavis finally focused on who was sitting across from her.

"Zeref?" she questioned, feeling equally stunned as she watched the dark haired scholar take the seat across from her. She had not seen him in ages, not since they had parted after some of her fellow college classmates had made some…unseemly insinuations about their relationship.

"I did not know you were into this type of thing, Mavis," Zeref said, a twinkle in his eye as he looked at the younger woman across the table from him. She blushed prettily at that and he found his breath catching in his chest, just as it always did whenever he was around her. He had been her very first college professor, six years her senior, when she had first attended one of his lectures. Despite two years having passed since then, he was still drawn to her, like a moth to a flame. Had his other students not started making a fuss about how close they were getting, he might have pursued something with her, consequences be damned. Seeing her now, though, here at this event…he couldn't help but feel that instant connection to her draw him in again.

"I didn't think you would be into this type of scene, either," Mavis said cheekily, a light smile gracing her lips as she stared at him hungrily, not that he seemed to notice. She had had a crush on him from the very first moment she had seen him in class that day. He had drawn her attention instantly and when they had first made eye contact…she had felt like she was going to pass out at the brief glance. He stole her breath and all thought without ever trying.

"You never should have let those other students keep you away from me," Mavis suddenly said after several moments of silence, at the exact time Zeref blurted out if she was actually single or if she was just doing this to help out Mira. Both of them fell silent at one another's outburst, color rising in their cheeks as they both realized what they had asked the other.

"It was improper for me to become as close to you as I had," Zeref mumbled, letting his dark bangs fall forward to cover his eyes. Feeling irritated and impatient with that answer, Mavis leaned across the table and brushed the hair from his eyes so she could look at them without interruption.

"I know you felt it," she breathed as she let her fingers linger against his jaw before bringing her hand, very reluctantly, back to her side of the table. Zeref barely dared to breathe as just the feeling of her fingers on such an innocent place of his body made his insides dance. How could she _still_ do this to him, despite her younger age and all of the time apart?

"Feeling something and being able to act upon it are completely different things," he said rather mechanically as he waited for his heart to restart after the brief contact, "I have never been a 'good' person, Mavis. You deserved, still deserve, so much more than I could ever give you."

"Stop being a self-deprecating idiot," Mavis scolded him, though a smile was upon her lips, "You know I have never cared about what you have done in the past."

"But I still do," Zeref said almost too quietly for her to hear, but she heard nonetheless and opened her mouth furiously to answer when they both heard the bell ring. With wide eyes, they stared at one another while people around them began to move; where had their time gone? Had those five minutes passed by _already_?

"This is not the end of this conversation, Zeref Dragneel," Mavis said quite seriously as she locked gazes with him before he could so much as stand, "Even if you say 'No' on your sheet, I will find you and _make_ you see the light. Even if I have to be that light." Zeref had no reply for her as he stood slowly and, quite regretfully, moved on to the next table, pale eyes lingering longingly on his back as he moved away.

* * *

 _Table 4: Evergreen_

"Laxus?!" Evergreen said as she watched the blonde haired man fold himself into the seat across from her. He glanced at her once before huffing, crossing his arms, and looking away. "What the hell are you doing here? Don't tell me Mira actually convinced you to come to this of your own free will?"

Laxus looked back at her then, a rather furious expression in his stormy blue eyes, but before he could so much as open his mouth and _rip her a new one_ , Evergreen's attention was away from him and she was glaring at someone else across the room. Someone who was shouting about manly things…someone Laxus happened to know quite well.

"Seriously?" Laxus grunted at her when he tossed a careless glance over his shoulder and saw exactly who she was glaring at, followed by Mira's pointed stare in his companion's direction before the white-haired woman winked at him, "Why don't you just pull him aside and shove your tongue down his throat already? It's not like he would be unwilling…"

Evergreen, who had been blushing already, blushed more furiously as a look of mortification and outrage, a hilarious combination, crossed her face. Oh if only she had her fan…she would hit one of her very best friends upside the head regardless of how much she personally admired and respected him.

"I don't have a thing for Mira's stupid little brother!" Ever hissed at Laxus, feeling more infuriated the longer Laxus stared at her with a highly unimpressed expression on his face. Minutes seemed to drag on before she couldn't handle it any more and said, "Stop looking at me like that! I don't!"

"Right…" Laxus said with a grin at his good friend's vehement denials. He, Freed, and Bickslow had a pool going on how long it would take the two idiots to finally admit they felt for one another. He had guessed sooner rather than later and he was pretty damn certain, especially after this event, that he would win that $300 from the two other men. It was probably going to be the easiest money he had earned in a long time, too.

"Well like you can talk!" Ever suddenly spluttered, the color still high in her cheeks, contrasting somewhat oddly with her light brown hair, "You and Mira have been dancing around each other for _years_! When are you finally going to man up and do something about it?"

Ever felt a shudder run up her spine at the very dangerous look Laxus was giving her and felt like she might have overstepped, even with her friend of the past fifteen or so years. But then he huffed gently and reached over the table to pat her on the head, mussing up her perfectly combed hair and making her feel irritated once again. Could he _be_ more infuriating?

"You should be focusing on your own love life, Ever, not mine," he said with a brotherly tone. Right then they heard the bell ring and he smiled at her, a rare thing for him, as he stood to leave, "Don't get so wrapped up in the little things. He's a good man and you should give him a chance." Laxus chuckled softly at Ever's stunned face before he added, right as he was turning away, "He really does love you, you know."

Ever didn't know how to respond to that as she watched Laxus go, completely unaware that her next date had already seated himself across from her.

* * *

 _Table 5: Lisanna_

Lisanna was excited about this speed-dating event. She didn't know whom her big sister had invited, but she was hoping to meet someone new and exciting. She used to have a thing for one of her friends, but she had grown out of that _years_ ago and then she had had some health issues and was in and out of the hospital for a couple years, so that put a damper on her love life…she was definitely ready to get out there now that her brother and sister weren't going to be overprotective siblings and actually let her date.

"Hey Lisanna!" Lisanna looked up with a large grin as she watched her good friend, Natsu, sit down across from her.

"Hey Natsu!" she responded as she sat forward eagerly. She had had a minor crush on Natsu for a few years before she realized she truly only saw him as a friend, nothing more. While she had been excited about the dates she would be going on, she wasn't disappointed Natsu was her first "date" of the night. He was quite a bit of fun and she knew it would start her night off right.

"So how did Mira convince you to come here?" Lisanna said with a smile as she brushed her short hair behind her ear.

"…she threatened me," Natsu mumbled as he pulled his trademark scarf up to cover his mouth. Lisanna giggled as she thought about how Mira would have done it.

"Your sister's nickname is very fitting," Natsu mumbled further, repressing a shudder as Lisanna giggled more at his expense.

"So what exactly have you been doing with yourself these days, Natsu?" Lisanna asked him, leaning forward and resting her chin in her hand.

"They promoted me!" Natsu said with an excited grin as he leaned forward as well.

"They did? That's awesome! What position do you hold now at the firehouse?" Lisanna asked, clapping her hands in delight for her friend.

"I'm the new Lieutenant," Natsu said with a grin as he puffed his chest out proudly.

"That is so wonderful! So does that mean when the captain is off duty or gone or whatever, that you'll get to take over for the day if need be?" Lisanna asked with genuine interest. Natsu had always wanted to be a firefighter, since he was a little kid, and for him to get the promotion he had worked for and been after for the past few years was fantastic.

"Yeah! If Laxus is gone I get to be acting captain. Let me tell you…Gajeel and Gray were _pissed_ when I was chosen over them! It was great!" Natsu said with a rather vicious grin on his face. Lisanna just laughed as she could picture their expressions quite well.

"So what have you been doing? You haven't had to go back to the hospital in a few months, right?" Natsu asked, his face transforming from a look of glee to one of concern.

"Yeah I've been doing well," Lisanna said softly, rubbing subconsciously at her inner arms that were covered by her long sleeved shirt; it was an automatic thing, really, from having had so many IVs over the past few years. Her arms had almost constantly been bruised back then…

"I'm glad you're better," Natsu said with a soft smile, noticing her discomfort at the topic and then moving on by saying, "But Mira was telling me you got a new job! How's that going?"

Lisanna was so grateful for Natsu's change of subject as she, very delightedly, started telling him all about the new veterinary clinic she and Elfman had been hired at right until the bell rang and she waved him off with a smile. As she waited for the next man to join her at her table, she wrote 'No' next to Natsu's name. While she may enjoy their time spent together as friends, she knew that's all they would ever be.

* * *

 _Table 6: Aries_

Aries was incredibly nervous. Incredibly, incredibly nervous! She had never done something like this before! Never! She swears! She was far too shy for it and tried very hard to hide behind her fleece sweater, even before her date had ever sat down.

"Aries? As in the astronomical sign?" a deep male voice asked and Aries squeaked as she looked up at the blue haired man looking at her with mild concern, "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, sorry!" she peeped as she stared with wide brown eyes at the man before her. A blush started to rise in her face as she noticed how handsome the man was, although she couldn't help but compare him to another man she knew quite well…

"No need to apologize," the man said with a soft smile and Aries found her gaze drawn to the prominent red tattoo upon his face before she blushed harder as she realized she was probably being rude.

"Your name is Jellal?" she asked as she glanced at his nametag displayed prominently on his black turtleneck sweater. He smiled at her as he nodded.

"So, Aries," Jellal started, looking at the very shy looking pink haired girl across the table from him, "What do you do for a living?" Aries looked completely startled that Jellal was asking her a question despite supposedly being on a date with him and Jellal had to hold back a chuckle. He wondered what on earth Mira had on her that made her come to this event when she was obviously painfully shy.

"Um I…I…I make costumes!" Aries squeaked out when she realized too much time had passed and Jellal was still waiting, quite patiently, for an answer.

"You do? That's quite interesting," Jellal said with a smile, wishing he knew how to make the girl feel more at ease, "I myself am involved in politics."

"That's much more interesting than what I do," Aries quietly responded, almost sighing in relief when Jellal had not asked _what_ she made costumes for…it wasn't exactly common knowledge that she worked behind the scenes for the city's circus, "What exactly do you do in relation to politics?"

"I am a campaign runner. Basically, I manage political candidates campaigns for them," Jellal said with a shrug. He knew his job was actually quite boring and he typically avoided talking about it for fear of putting people to sleep.

"Is that very difficult?" Aries asked politely, although she felt like that would be a very dull career to have; she would never say it, though, as she was far too proper.

Jellal laughed at that and then immediately felt bad when Aries squeaked out a, "Sorry!"

"It's really not," Jellal said kindly as Aries blushed in mortification, "You don't need to apologize for asking. My job is seriously quite boring and there have been many days I have debated whether or not to change careers. I have just been doing it so long now I don't know what else I would do."

"Perhaps you should consider something completely different if you find yourself unsatisfied with your life?" Aries said with a pensive look on her face.

"That is a great idea," Jellal said with a smile right as the bell rang. He smiled softly again as he stood and, before he moved on, reached over and placed his hand over Aries's, making her look at him in shock, "Don't feel bad about writing 'No', Aries." Aries just stared at him in shock as he waved at her and headed to the next table. How could he be so _astute_ from only having spoken with her for a few minutes? With a grateful smile at his back, Aries wrote down his name followed by a 'No' before she looked up to see who her next date would be.

* * *

 _Table 7: Levy_

"Why hello there," Levy looked up with a bright grin when she heard the smooth male voice speak to her and felt her mouth go dry. The man who was pulling out the chair across from her was, without a doubt, ridiculously hot, and oddly familiar. And she knew _he_ knew how hot he was as he winked at her and brushed some of his spiky orange hair out of his face before he adjusted the sleeves of his suit. Who wears a _suit_ to a speed-dating event, anyway?

"My name is Loke," he said, eyeing her from over the top of his darkly tinted glasses. Levy felt like fanning herself as he stared at her. If she could describe him in just a handful of words, she would probably say something that was highly inappropriate for a school librarian like her to say. A blush started to travel up her face to sit prominently on her cheekbones as Loke stared at her longer.

"Are you shy, love?" Loke practically purred as he reached across the table, took her hand, and very gently brushed his lips across it, "If you are, please allow me to pass the time commenting on the lovely azure shade of your hair, or the perfect chestnut color of your eyes." Levy's blush deepened even as her rational brain screamed at her, "PLAYER!"

"U-um that won't be necessary," Levy said with a cough as she, not so subtly, took her hand back from Loke's grip. He didn't look at all perturbed and instead smiled winningly at her. "S-so what do you do for a living, Loke?"

"I tame lions," Loke said with another flashy grin and a wink. Levy seriously was feeling like she needed to holler over at Ever's table and ask her if she had her fan. Whether it was to fan herself or to smack Loke to keep him from looking at her like he would enjoy devouring her, she wasn't so sure.

"Do you really?" Levy asked, highly interested as she recalled how several of Lucy's friends worked for the city's circus, "OH MY GOD you're Leo the Lion!" Levy's eyes bugged out in realization when she recalled one of several conversations with Lu about how she had attended high school with many friends who had joined the circus after graduation.

"I am," Loke said smugly, pushing his glasses back up his nose and giving her another winning smile, "Have you seen one of my shows, darling?"

"One? Lu has dragged me to at least a dozen! I knew I knew you from somewhere!" Levy exclaimed triumphantly.

"You know my Princess?" Loke asked with interest as Levy began babbling about how Lucy had taken her to many of the shows the circus had put on and how she was always impressed by the acts all of the performers did.

"I do," Levy said warily as she noticed Loke taking on a dreamy look.

"Isn't my Princess so utterly perfect?" Loke asked with a faraway gaze, "So kind and loving and so forgiving…" Levy smiled at Loke's description of Lucy, feeling that it fit quite well, but then the bell rang and Loke seemed to snap out of whatever memory he was wrapped up in.

"I do hope you write 'Yes' next to my name, my lovely Levy," Loke said, his radiantly flirty personality back in play. Levy giggled as he walked away, shooting her a sly grin before he seated himself at the next table and she wrote down a 'Maybe' beside his name; even if he was a player, it was fun talking to him.

* * *

 _Table 8: Juvia_

"Gajeel?" Juvia exclaimed when the long, black-haired and heavily pierced man sat down across from her. He smirked at her and let out his famous, "Gee-hee" laugh.

"Rain woman," he said with an inclination of his head, "How did that demon convince you to come here?"

"Juvia does not like the insinuation," Juvia stated with a huff, glaring at her best friend. "And she did not expect her best friend to be her first date…" she finished with a grumble.

"Gee-hee; neither did I," Gajeel said with another smirk at Juvia. She was feeling highly flustered at having her best friend across the table from her _as her date_! It was beyond strange and she wished he wasn't actually there and some nameless stranger was sitting across from her.

"So how's your new gig going?" Gajeel asked when Juvia just stared at him blankly for a few moments, "I've seen you on the news a few times. You're doing great."

Juvia blushed straight to the roots of her azure hair at Gajeel's compliment. She and Gajeel had been best friends since they were teenagers and she didn't feel closer to anyone, not even her girl friends seated around her were as close to her as Gajeel. Which is exactly why his compliment threw her so bad; Gajeel really wasn't the type to randomly compliment others.

"Th-thank you, Gajeel," Juvia murmured as she looked down at the white tablecloth. Gajeel sighed as he leaned back in his chair. The crazy woman never could take a compliment.

"Are you having fun playing weather girl?" Gajeel asked, probing for more information about Juvia's new job. He had heard from his fellow firefighters that some of Juvia's new coworkers were not exactly…professionals when it came to pretty young girls and while he knew his friend could take care of herself, he still always made sure he had her back.

"Juvia does enjoy her job!" Juvia said, her eyes glittering as she started speaking very passionately, "Juvia is still considered only an intern so she does not get to be on camera as often as her counterpart, but Juvia is still having fun! Juvia gets to work closely with the other meteorologists to make predictions as accurate as possible given the information she has on hand! Juvia has been told that her predictions are accurate almost 100% of the time! That's even better than the head meteorologist!" Gajeel smiled at Juvia's enthusiasm. _Finally_ she shared how she is doing; he could only get so much out of her from a text.

"I'm proud of you, Rain Woman," Gajeel admitted somewhat uncharacteristically. He couldn't help himself, though. Juvia frequently put others before herself, especially when it came to her job and someone who was considered more of an "expert" than her, so for her to admit that she was doing so well was a real step forward for her.

"And you, Gajeel?" Juvia asked as a blush adorned her face at her friend's compliment, "How is the fire station?"

Gajeel shrugged. He hadn't actually gotten the promotion he had been angling for; instead the pink haired moron had gained it, but he was pretty sure their fire chief, Makarov, knew what he was doing. After all, Gajeel didn't necessarily want to be Lieutenant. What he really was angling for was arson investigator.

"Did Gajeel not get the job?" Juvia asked sympathetically, her eyes widening with pity as she reached across the table and took his hand in hers, "Juvia is certain Gajeel will get it next time. Gajeel deserves a promotion as he works towards his ultimate goal. Juvia knows you can do it." Juvia smiled at him then and Gajeel couldn't help the small smile that graced his face as he responded to her compliment.

"I'll do my best, Rain Woman," Gajeel said as the bell rang out. Juvia smiled as Gajeel walked to his next table and, before her next "date" arrived, wrote down a "No" next to his name. It wasn't that she didn't think Gajeel would be a good man to date; he just wasn't the right man for _her_. Juvia took a deep breath as she put a smile on her face and waited for her next date.

* * *

 _Table 9: Lucy_

"Hi, Gray!" Lucy said with a smile as the dark haired man sat down across from her. She and Gray had taken a couple of classes together back in college and she had always enjoyed talking with him.

"Hey, Lucy," Gray said with a responding smile as he pulled out the chair and sat down, "What have you been up to recently?"

"Oh you know…same old," Lucy said with a soft chuckle, leaning forward and lacing her fingers under her chin, "Still trying to finish my novel."

"I thought you had been published already?" Gray asked, his brow furrowing as his hand wandered down his chest and started playing with the hem of his shirt. Lucy eyed it warily, knowing how Gray had somehow acquired a stripping habit at some point in his life; he blamed his adoptive mother, Ur, but Lucy really wasn't sure she believed it was his mom's fault. Gray noticed Lucy's somewhat pointed glare and sheepishly realized he had unconsciously been about to pull his shirt off. Throwing his hands up in surrender, he waited for Lucy to answer his question.

"I have had a few short stories published," Lucy admitted, a hint of relief in her tone when Gray realized what he had been doing, "But what I really want is to get a novel published. You can only get so far with short stories and I really want people to read and know my work."

"I can understand that," Gray said with a nod of his head, "Most people read full-length books, not short stories, and if you have yours published in an anthology, it's possible people might only read a few of them before setting it aside."

"Exactly!" Lucy exclaimed as she started gesturing animatedly as she spoke, "People might buy an anthology for one author, and then read _just_ that story and so if they only bought it for one person, then they may never even read mine. And if they bought it and read a few and didn't like any, they might just stop and then they wouldn't read mine that way either! It's a serious conundrum!"

Gray smiled as he watched Lucy talk about being an author and how she was struggling with writing a compelling romance novel that hadn't already been done before. She really was a beautiful girl, with her large brown eyes, straight blonde hair, and curvy body. But she wasn't _just_ pretty. She was also smart and funny and just fun. Gray wondered if Lucy would write "Yes" next to his name. He had thought about asking her out, often, when they were in a few classes together, but somehow he had never asked. He thought they would probably be good together since they got along so well, but at the same time, in the back of his mind, he knew that wouldn't be enough to maintain a relationship.

"Gray?" Lucy suddenly asked when Gray hadn't responded after a few moments.

"I'm sorry, Lucy. I must have spaced out there for a minute," he said with a sheepish chuckle, "Could you ask me again?"

"I asked why are you here. I wouldn't really expect you to be at an event like this. Don't you and Loke usually go after the girls together?" she asked with a rather knowing smile. Gray shuffled in his seat uncomfortably at that. Yeah so he and Loke had kind of been players back in the day…but they were changed men, he swears! Well…he was a changed man. He couldn't speak for Loke.

"I don't do that crap anymore…" Gray muttered as he started to pull unconsciously at his shirt again, "I think I'm ready to settle down."

"You? The infamous Gray Fullbuster, ready to settle down?" Lucy said with a laugh as her eyes glittered with amusement as she looked at him, "What woman caught your eye to make you say that?" Gray shuffled uncomfortably in his seat again, feeling hot as Lucy got dangerously close to the truth.

"What are you talking about?" he muttered as he pulled his shirt halfway off without even realizing before Lucy shrieked at him.

"Gray! Keep your clothes on!" Lucy cried out even as she struggled not to bust up laughing. He most often stripped when he was uncomfortable, so Lucy knew she must have been close to the truth. As he snapped out of his daze and blushed while he pulled his shirt down, the bell rang out and Lucy smiled.

"I'll see you around, Gray," she told him as he stood and began shuffling off to the next table, the back of his neck still slightly red. He turned back to smile at her softly before she looked down at her folder and wrote a "No" next to his name. They would probably make an okay couple, if she were being 100% honest with herself, but she also couldn't really see a future between them outside of just being friends. That and there was something about the mention of some mystery woman that had flustered him so… She grinned as she thought about whom it possibly could be before she turned to meet the gaze of her next date.

* * *

 _Table 10: Erza_

Erza gazed coolly at the man who had taken a seat across from her. She believed she had seen him somewhere before, probably hanging around with the beast of a blonde man who liked to hover around Mira, but she couldn't actually place him. She saw that his name was Bickslow, written in crazy letters on his nametag, and it seemed to fit him.

Bickslow probably could have been considered traditionally handsome if he didn't have the tattoo across his face and crazy eyes. Erza didn't know how else to describe his eyes besides crazy. They really were strange, almost like they were peering into her soul as he stared at her. For what it was worth, he also looked highly uncomfortable to be seated across from her.

"I am Erza Scarlet," Erza said, trying to kick start the conversation as the silence seemed to stretch on and on awkwardly. Bickslow looked startled as she spoke but quickly recovered, grinning while sticking his tongue out simultaneously.

"What are you doing?" Erza asked, raising an eyebrow at the man's antics. He was weird. There was seriously no other way to describe him and for Erza, who was serious to a fault at times, she knew this "date" was going to go nowhere fast.

"Nothing," Bickslow said with a shrug as he leaned forward and eyed Erza with interest. He had never actually talked to _the_ Titania before and he felt seriously intimidated. Something about sitting across from one of the city's top female police officers simultaneously made his blood race through his veins and chill at the same time. It was the weirdest adrenalin rush to sit across from a woman who could break him in half like a toothpick if she so chose. And arrest him. Maybe it was the arresting part that got to him.

"I'm going to be writing 'No' next to your name," Erza said suddenly a few moments later. Bickslow nodded; he hadn't really been expecting a "Yes".

"There is just no spark," Erza continued on, being brutally honest as Bickslow just grinned crazily, "I am certain you are a decent man, but you are not for me and I am most certainly not for you."

Bickslow laughed at that. He seemed decent? Who they hell talked like that anymore?

"You seem decent, too, Titania," he grinned again, wagging his tongue somewhat indecently, but Erza just eyed him sternly and he stopped.

"I wish you luck on your next date," Erza said, nodding to him as the bell rang out. Bickslow just grinned crazily again as he moved on, leaving Erza to wonder if all of her dates were going to be spent sitting in mostly awkward silence. If that were going to be the case, then she was going to ask for some strawberry cake since Mira made the best strawberry cake. There was no reason for her to sit in misery, after all. As she started daydreaming about the most delicious cake she would savor soon, her next date sighed and sat down across from her.

* * *

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE:** So much fun! I am seriously going to have a _blast_ writing this. I hope everyone else enjoys this chapter! As always, I don't own Fairy Tail.


	3. Chapter 3

Date # 2

 _Table 1: Mira_

"Oh. It's you," Bickslow said as he sat down across from Mira with a crazy smile, "I thought the boss said you were running this shindig."

Mira smiled sweetly at the man before narrowing her eyes dangerously at him. As soon as Bickslow saw the narrowing of her eyes, he wanted to back up as fast as possible and run away. If there was time, possibly burn the chair he was sitting in so no one else would ever have to sit under _that_ stare.

"How was your first date?" Mira asked intensely. She was completely focused on Bickslow and while he knew it was technically a date and you should be focused on your date, he really, _really_ did not want her gaze on him. He also did not want to answer her question. Laxus's girl was entirely too terrifying for his taste. She was perfect for the boss, strong, independent, and unwilling to take any of his crap, but he did not want anything to do with the Demon himself…

"Bickslow," Mira said severely, her eyebrows swooping down as she glared at him critically, "You should not ignore your date."

"Sorry!" he managed to squeak out before roughly clearing his throat since he wasn't about to be caught dead squeaking, "My date didn't go anywhere. Titania's not interested and I can't say I am either."

"What do you mean you're not interested in Erza!" Mira said, her eyes flashing treacherously, "Erza is beautiful and strong and any man would be interested in her!" Bickslow swallowed hard as he took in Mira's furious face. Why was she so insane! It wasn't like he was saying Erza was unattractive!

"I know she is! She's just not the one for me!" Bickslow said, trying hard to backpedal from the crazy train he seemed to have jumped on unknowingly. _Why_ did the boss like her again? Bickslow was about to get another tongue lashing from the white-haired woman when the bell rang. He had never been so glad in his life to hear the sound and practically ran away from the table, Mira glaring at his back the whole time and muttering not-so-sweet nothings under her breath as she wrote a big "NO" by his name. Although this did mean her perfect match for Erza might be chosen…hm…maybe the date wasn't quite as big a bust as she initially thought.

* * *

 _Table 2: Cana_

"Hey brother Strauss," Cana said with a grin as she watched Elfman fold himself into the chair that looked entirely too small for his big frame.

"My name is Elfman and it is MANLY!" Elfman retorted, looking irritated with the brunette, "But you knew that, Cana."

The woman grinned as she looked Elfman over leisurely, making him shift uncomfortably in his seat. Elfman was about a year and a half younger than Mira, so he was also about that much younger than Cana, but she had never really looked at him as a guy she might date. She had noticed he was attractive, with his body builder's physique, but she had never really thought past the fact he had a nice body.

"What do you do for a living, Elfman?" Cana asked as she put her elbow on the table and laid her head in her hand. It couldn't hurt to treat this like the date it was supposed to be, right? She might find out she and Elfman could get along really well. Elfman grinned at that before he started talking about his new job.

"I work at the new veterinary clinic with Lisanna now. We both are working as assistants and we get to help animals. It's a great job," Cana nodded in response to Elfman's comments about the clinic and couldn't help but think that Elfman was a total stereotypical teddy bear man. He was this big, tough, strong guy on the outside, but truthfully he was a _huge_ softie on the inside. Cana had to be honest with herself as she listened to Elfman passionately describe how much he loved his job; she didn't see this going any further than right here at the table.

"How about you?" Elfman asked, a blush rising on his cheeks, "I have been talking about myself the whole time. It is very _unmanly_ of me to not ask about you." Cana laughed at that and wondered where Elfman had gotten his ideas on "manliness".

"I'm working as a consultant now," Cana said with a shrug as she leaned back in her chair, "Basically I go around to clubs and bars and help them fix their atmosphere to bring in more customers."

"That sounds interesting," Elfman said politely, although Cana noticed his gaze had moved away from her to someone else for a brief moment. She grinned as she realized just _who_ he was looking at; if this convoluted plot of Mira's didn't work to get at least those two together, Cana would get the two drunk and shove them in a broom closet somewhere.

"I get all the booze I want so yeah I dig it," the brunette said with a laugh right as the bell rang, signaling their time was over, "See ya around, big guy." Elfman nodded at her as he moved off to the next table, giving her a moment to write "No" next to his name before the next man sat down at her table.

* * *

 _Table 3: Mavis_

"Damn you're tiny," Bacchus said as he sat down across from Mavis. Her eyes narrowed at his rudeness.

"And you're a jerk," Mavis proclaimed as she stared at him with her eerily pale eyes. "Have you ever been a gentleman?"

"I have not," Bacchus said with a grin as he took in the fiery spirit of the younger woman in front of him, "But I also have never claimed to be a gentleman."

"I don't doubt that," Mavis replied, her nose wrinkling at him, "I'm not writing yes."

Bacchus outright laughed at that, "I didn't expect you to, little girl."

"Little girl who can kick your ass with both hands behind her back," Mavis said as her eyes narrowed again. This guy seemed like he very much needed to be put in his place and Mavis would not object at all to be the one to do it; she would actually find it quite cathartic after her last date.

"Is that an actual challenge?" Bacchus asked with a somewhat maniacal grin on his face.

"More like a promise," Mavis said as she smiled sweetly and leaned forward to lie her cheek against her palm.

"Oh you are on, girlie," the older man responded, "When?"

"Any time, Bacchus," Mavis said with a deceptively cute tilt of her head, "I'll sweep the floor with you." As Bacchus laughed at Mavis's proclamation, the bell rang. The older man smiled rather condescendingly at Mavis before moving on to the next table while she fumed quietly and wrote a large "NO" next to his name.

* * *

 _Table 4: Evergreen_

Zeref blinked, surprised, as he sat down across from the woman named Evergreen. He couldn't help himself though; Evergreen was quite a different name. He could not talk much, though, since his name was Zeref.

"Zeref? What kind of name is that?" Evergreen asked haughtily as she stared at the black haired man seated across from her. Zeref blinked again at her rudeness as he wondered if she was always so abrupt.

"It is the name I was given at my birth. Just as I believe Evergreen was yours," Zeref said mildly as he looked at her. She shifted uncomfortably in her seat before she responded.

"So how do you know Mira?" Evergreen asked as she looked at Zeref. He was quite handsome, she had to admit, with that dark hair and those dark eyes. He was also oddly familiar but she couldn't seem to place him.

"Through my younger brother," Zeref replied, wondering why that would be something she asked. It wasn't your typical date question, although since this was technically a blind date asking about the person who set you up might be fairly normal… Zeref was not sure. He had not gone on a date since the whole incident with Mavis…

"What's his name? I probably know him," Evergreen questioned imperiously, flipping her light brown hair behind her ear impatiently as she eyed him from over the top of her glasses. He was just _so_ familiar! And she _knew_ she had heard his name somewhere before…

"His name is Natsu," Zeref said.

"Oh my god you're _Natsu's_ brother?! I am so _sorry_ for you! That little twerp is so annoying!" Evergreen practically exploded as she heard Natsu's name come out of Zeref's mouth. That pink headed fool had been a constant thorn in Laxus's side for almost as long as she could remember.

"I quite like my little brother," Zeref said stiffly as he narrowed his eyes at Evergreen, causing her to wish she could take her words back. Zeref's gaze was rather dark and terrifying.

"I-I guess it would be nice," Evergreen said, trying to make up for her words, "especially since you two had not seen each other in so long. Natsu had said you had thought he had disappeared along with your father?"

"Igneel was not my father," Zeref said quite seriously before he nodded, "But yes…I had thought I had lost Natsu when Igneel disappeared. The case workers assigned to us sent us to different homes and it took me ages to find him again."

"That must have been very hard," Evergreen responded softly, her voice rather rough with emotion. She knew what it felt like to feel alone in the world…

"Yes…" Zeref said quietly, noticing Evergreen's change in attitude, "But I have found him now and I am not alone."

"No," Evergreen replied simply, "No you are no longer alone." As she was finishing her statement, the bell rang and Zeref stood.

"You are not alone either," he told her in a soft, even tone before he moved away to the next table. Evergreen's eyes felt strangely misty as she looked down at the folder and wrote his name in the appropriate column. It took her a moment to compose herself and decide what she wanted to write, but finally she wrote a simple, "Maybe", before turning to look at who her next date would be.

* * *

 _Table 5: Lisanna_

"Hey Laxus," Lisanna said with a smile as the large blonde man sat down across from her, "I did not expect you to attend this kind of event."

Laxus grunted noncommittally as he glanced over his shoulder before turning back to the near carbon copy of Mira sitting across from him. Her eyes were just a shade darker than Mira's and her hair was shorter, but honestly the two probably could have passed for twins if Lisanna had her sister's hair.

"Why don't you just ask her out properly?" Lisanna asked with a giggle as she noticed Laxus's gaze; he had not been nearly as stealthy as he had thought. A muscle twitched in his cheek before his expression smoothed and he looked at the younger woman impassively.

"I do not know what you are referring to," he finally said in a rather grumbly voice. Lisanna giggled again as she waved her hand over to where her sister's table was.

"It's obvious you like her. Why don't you just take a chance and find out for sure?"

"I still don't know what you're talking about," Laxus insisted stubbornly while a clenching feeling in his gut started. Was he really that obvious? And if he was, why hadn't that demon made a move yet? Wasn't she all about the romance?

"You have to make the move," Lisanna said, her tone changing to one of seriousness, "Mira doesn't pick up on the subtle clues you send her way. She knows you think she's attractive; practically every man, and many women, thinks she's attractive. You have to show her she means more to you than just her face."

Laxus's eye twitched almost imperceptibly at that. Was that the demon's problem? She thought he only saw her as a pretty face and a great body? Was she blind? How could she not see that he thought she was the most perfect, kind, powerful, amazing, generous, and forgiving person he had ever had the pleasure of knowing? How could she not _know_ that? Laxus wanted to stand, go to her, and shake her right now if Mira really didn't know. But he refrained, knowing how much this event meant to her. He would sit through thousands of speed dating events if it would make her happy.

"As my brother would say," Lisanna said with a soft smile and a shake of her head, "You need to be a man and tell her how you feel. I promise you if you do, you will not be disappointed."

Unable to stay quiet any longer, Laxus muttered, "How can you be sure?" Lisanna gave him a brilliant grin before she responded, right before the bell rang.

"She loves you, dummy. How can you not see it?" Laxus stood in shock as the bell rang at the end of Lisanna's statement and he watched her write down what looked like a "No" in her folder. Could she be right, though? Did Mira love him? He would just have to wait until their date to find out for sure…

* * *

 _Table 6: Aries_

"Hey you have hair like mine!" Aries startled from her reverie as she looked up at the pink-haired man grinning at her from across the table. She was too nervous to say anything, so she just let him ramble, eyeing his name tag as she took in his infectious good mood.

"Not many people have pink hair naturally," Natsu said good naturedly as he ran a hand through his hair, "I used to get teased about having pink hair, you know, since I'm a guy and people have a hard time associating the color pink with being mas…mas…"

Aries smiled softly as she watched Natsu struggle with finding the right word. He seemed very sweet, if a bit in your face, and she decided to help him out.

"Do you mean masculine?" she asked in her quiet voice.

"That's it!" Natsu suddenly shouted, somewhat breaking the soft, silent atmosphere Mirajane had tried to cultivate for the event. "Hey you're pretty smart, Are-eyes. What do you do for a living? I work as a firefighter! It kicks ass and I get to save people who need help! Where do you work again?"

"I-I…that's not," Aries was cut off from correcting Natsu when the bell rang and he got up, waved cheerily at her, and moved on. Unsure of exactly what kind of date she had just gone on, Aries blinked before writing "No" next to Natsu's name. He was just a little too intense for someone like her.

* * *

 _Table 7: Levy_

Levy smiled at her fellow blue-haired person as he sat down across from her. She knew him from pictures Erza had in her room. Jellal had been her childhood friend and they had unfortunately lost touch when he had engaged in some…questionable activities. She hoped he was into more legal things now.

"Hello, Levy," Jellal said with a smile as he read her nametag. She was mildly familiar to him, but he couldn't quite place where he knew her from.

"Hi, Jellal!" Levy said happily as she looked at him. He really was insanely handsome, like all of the men Mira seemed to know. Although she suddenly wondered how Mira had gotten ahold of Jellal…what kind of connections did the white haired woman have, anyway?

"I know where I know you from now," Jellal said with a smile in response to Levy's, "You're the head librarian at Magnolia Library."

Levy beamed at him when he stated her job. She absolutely adored her job and it made her happy when people recognized her from the library, since not too many people went anymore.

"I am," she said, giving him another radiant smile, "It's always good to hear people still go to the library."

"Yes it is quite a shame that library attendance seems to be diminishing, isn't it? Do you think it only has to do with people purchasing electronic readers and tablets?" Jellal asked interestedly. Levy smiled with delight as she engaged Jellal in conversation about library attendance and how it was actually going up since she had started a e-reader borrower program.

"It's actually really exciting," Levy said with enthusiasm, "Now that we have the program in place for people to borrow not only e-readers, but whatever books we have on the e-readers, the library is actually thriving compared to what it was even last year."

"And the coffee and pastry shop located in the lobby doesn't hurt matters either," Jellal said with a knowing grin. Levy chuckled at his comment and nodded.

"So what do you do for a living?" she said as she leaned forward on one hand and smiled.

"I work in politics. I'm a campaign manager," Jellal said with little enthusiasm.

"Hm…" Levy said contemplatively, "It sounds to me like you don't really enjoy your job."

"I used to somewhat enjoy it," Jellal admitted, "But now that I'm a bit older, my priorities have changed and I really don't care for covering up for other people's mistakes. I made quite a few in my past, and I would rather own up to them than cover them up."

"That's very admirable," Levy said, thinking of Erza when she said it. She kind of wished she could be a fly on the wall during that particular date, but then the bell rang, signaling the end of their time together.

"Thank you for the lovely date, Levy," Jellal said honestly.

"Thank you," she replied with a smile, "And if you're ever looking for a change of career, I would love to see what you could do about library publicity." Jellal looked taken aback for a moment, and then he smiled hugely.

"I'll definitely think about it, Levy," he said as he waved and moved on to the next table. Levy returned his wave then took the few seconds she had left before the next person sat down at her table to write his name and then "No" next to it. She and Jellal had great friendship chemistry, but in her heart she knew he was meant for someone else and so was she.

* * *

 _Table 8: Juvia_

"Oh my," Juvia startled as she heard the distinctly male voice speak, "I never realized Mira knew such a beautiful celebrity. It is my honor to be your partner tonight on this date." Juvia felt quite flustered then. The man across from her had a mane of red-orange hair, glasses, and what looked like a custom tailored suit. He was incredibly handsome and charming and Juvia had met his kind before.

Loke couldn't believe that Mira actually knew the new, well occasional, weather girl. Did the white-haired woman know everyone in this town? It certainly felt like it…

"Juvia does not approve of you," Juvia said with a narrowing of her eyes, "Juvia has met men like you before and all men like you do is toy with women's emotions. You are not the man Juvia is looking for."

Loke was incredibly taken aback by Juvia's statement. He had never been called out quite like that before and he was not sure how to respond.

"I…must admit I have never met a woman like you before," Loke stated as he cocked his head to the side, trying to figure her out as he looked her over.

"Juvia does not care to continue this line of conversation. She does not enjoy being dissected by insecure men who think that by projecting an aura of confidence they can get any woman they want to sleep with them," Juvia said flatly. Loke was, once again, taken aback by the spirited blue-haired woman sitting across from him.

"Alright," he said with a nod, "May I ask you what your favorite color is?"

"Juvia's favorite color is pale blue," she said with a smile, seeming grateful for the change of subject.

"I prefer yellow myself," Loke said with an encouraging smile. "I think it's a happy color and I feel more people could use some happiness in their lives."

"Juvia thinks blue is calming," she told him as she brushed a stray hair back behind her ear. "It's like looking at water and watching how it just goes with the flow. Oh please forgive Juvia's pun," the weather girl said with a hint of pink in her cheeks.

"No need to apologize," Loke said, "I think you're right. Blue is very calming and I can see the comparison to water. Water flows however. It follows whatever forks or twists come near it. It's beautiful."

Juvia smiled at Loke's comment, agreeing with him and wondering if she had misjudged him initially. He certainly didn't seem like one of her previous boyfriends and she wondered why he put up the play boy front.

"You are quite handsome and Juvia thinks probably very kind once people get to know you. So why do you act like a play boy? Juvia wishes to know," she stated, her eyes seeming to penetrate deep into his soul.

"I dated a woman once who was quite cruel to me and others…" Loke found himself opening up to the blue-haired woman even as he wondered how she did it, "I flirt because I am afraid of being hurt again."

"Juvia understands," she responded quite seriously, "However if you never take chances, you'll never know true love. Juvia is certain of this and she believes Loke should take a chance and let someone get past the flirty façade."

Loke couldn't believe what she was saying and how much sense it made, but then the bell rang and he was moving away, still feeling a bit stunned by her words. Juvia smiled as she watched the orange-haired man walk away and then she wrote "No" next to his name. He wasn't the man for her, even if he did completely drop the flirty persona.

* * *

 _Table 9: Lucy_

"You look like a bunny," the man with long, black hair and numerous piercings commented as he sat down across from Lucy.

"Excuse me?" she asked, arching one delicate eyebrow in disbelief.

"You look like a bunny," the man repeated with a grin, glancing her over with some honest interest in his eyes, "You remind me of a bunny. You look soft and sweet, like a rabbit."

Lucy's eye twitched at that. So she looked like a small rodent, huh? How was that good first date material! And what _was_ his name? His hair was so long it was covering his name tag!

"If we could now move off the topic of me looking like a rodent," Lucy said through slightly gritted teeth, "Maybe I could get your name?"

"Gajeel," the man responded with a weird chuckle. It sounded like "gee-hee"; it was just bizarre and Lucy had never heard a laugh like it before.

"Okay, Gajeel," Lucy said brightly, moving on from their somewhat disastrous beginning, "What kinds of things do you like doing after you get done working?"

"I work with metal," Gajeel grunted.

"Metal?" Lucy asked, wondering if she had heard him correctly.

"Yeah. I work on cars, make sculptures, build things. I enjoy it," Gajeel said, some animation leaking into his voice.

"That's interesting!" Lucy said with a smile. "I don't think I've ever met a metalworker before. Do you ever sell the things you create?"

Gajeel thought over her question for a moment. He had never actually thought about selling his creations, but maybe people would buy them.

"No," he said after a few moments.

"Why not?" Lucy asked.

"Just never thought about it."

"Maybe you should."

"I work as a firefighter. I don't have time for the frivolous selling of my stuff," Gajeel huffed, feeling a bit off balance by the petite blonde across from him.

"Do you want to stay a firefighter?" Lucy asked, interested in the dark and highly pierced man across from her. She had to admit she had never met someone with so many piercings in her life and his life intrigued her.

"I want to be an arson investigator," Gajeel admitted, "Things like that interest me."

"That is very interesting," Lucy said with a soft smile, "But I don't think you should give up on trying to sell some of your sculptures. I'm sure someone would like what you create. And even if they don't, that is a very cool hobby."

Gajeel gave the blonde a rare smile just as the bell rang and he gave her a quiet, "See ya," before moving on. Lucy chuckled to herself at the blush that graced the tough man's cheeks and wrote "No" next to his name. He was definitely an interesting guy, and she wouldn't mind getting to know him, but he just wasn't her type.

* * *

 _Table 10: Erza_

"Gray," Erza said, blinking in surprise as she watched him sit down across from her. He had interrupted a rather excellent day dream about her eating strawberry cake while on the beach next to…

"Hey Erza," Gray said as he grinned at her from across the table, where he was leaning back in his chair, lifting two of the feet up off the floor, "Didn't expect to see you here."

"Am I not allowed to attend speed dating events?" Erza asked dangerously as she eyed Gray before she gestured for him to put his chair back on the ground. He did with a rather scared looking expression.

"Of course you're allowed to attend anything you want, Erza!" Gray said, practically choking on his words in his hurry to get them out of his throat. He and Erza had known each other for _years_ , which is partially why he was so utterly terrified by the red head. She was personally responsible for separating about ninety percent of his and that fire bug's fights when they were kids…and now…

"I appreciate your permission," Erza said coolly, "And do keep your clothes on, Gray, or we might have to have a serious discussion…again." Gray only gulped in response, stilling his hands as they were making their way rather jerkily to his shirt buttons again.

"S-so," Gray started, grasping at straws in his attempt to converse with the one woman who utterly terrified him and yet was still one of his closest and best friends, "How are things at the station?"

"They are going well, thank you, Gray," Erza said with a gentle smile, "It is interesting being a detective. I quite enjoy investigatory work. What about for you? How are things at your station?"

"I didn't get the promotion," Gray said with a grumble, "That stupi…Natsu got it instead."

"I am sorry to hear you were passed over, Gray. However, Natsu is your firefighter in arms and you should be happy for him. I am quite proud of the accomplishment he has made," Erza said in a rather motherly manner as she arched an eyebrow at the dark haired man.

"I suppose," Gray said begrudgingly. It had been really hard, though, when Laxus announced Natsu was going to get the position. Gray had felt pretty terrible when he had been passed over, but at the same time, he had been oddly relieved. While he loved his job as a firefighter, he wasn't sure he would want the responsibility that came along with being a lieutenant. Which may or may not be a cop-out, but…whatever.

"Gray," Erza started gently, "Sometimes the things we don't get are the things we need."

"Are you a fortune cookie now, Erza?" Gray asked with a snort before shutting up quickly at the furious face she put on.

"Listen to me," she said imperiously before switching back to her kind and motherly tone, "Sometimes the things we miss out on, or think we are missing out on, are just leading us to something better. While it might hurt a bit that you didn't get the promotion this time around, maybe it's because something better is waiting just around the corner for you." Erza finished her statement with a smile and a subtle glance at another woman a few tables away. Right as Gray was turning to see who Erza was looking at, the bell rang and he had to move on. With a small wave, Erza sent him off, looking deep in thought, as she wrote "No" next to his name.

* * *

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE:** Woo four posts in one day! I'm feeling super productive! I hope everyone enjoyed this latest chapter in Speed Dating-Fairy Tail Style! As usual, I own nothing but the idea behind this story!


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